the honey eater » fruit

Peach Pie

naomi — Wed, 28 Jul 2010 22:06:09 +0000

At the moment, I’m far away from home, in Stockholm to be exact. The days are long and constantly shift between clouds and blinding sunlight; you’re never quite sure if it’s going to rain or if you’re going to get a sunburn from minute to minute. I’ve been gone for nearly a week and still have another three weeks of traveling ahead of me. I can’t remember when I took a trip that was so long and so relaxing. Vacations like this make being an adult a whole lot of fun.

Because we’re gone so long (I’ll be away for a month in total) we decided to sublet our apartment. This meant that before we left we had to make some headway into the stocks of food cluttering up the refrigerator. Frozen muffins were defrosted, soups were eaten, and a big pot of vegetables was mixed up. I also had a single pie crust that I had to use, leftover from making these. The Saturday before we left I saw piles of beautiful peaches at the market and couldn’t resist buying a bag (or two) to help me use up that extra crust.

I may have mentioned it before, but I love having some pie crust at the ready, it means you can whip up a pie or tart in no time at all and everyone thinks you’re some kind of magic (and who’s to say that you aren’t?). Sunday morning, while Amir was still asleep, I rolled out my crust, peeled and sliced my peaches, tossed them with some sugar and flour and then threw it all in the oven. As I crawled back into bed, less than an hour later, Amir asked me what I had been up to and I said, oh so casually “there’s a peach pie in the oven.” The expression on his face said it all: some kind of magic. Eating peach pie for breakfast is pretty magical, even if you make it yourself (maybe especially when you make it yourself). We ate nearly half the pie that morning.

Peach pie

I was fairly conservative buying fruit because we were leaving and only bought 10 peaches. The pie was good, if a little thin. I’m upping the number of peaches because I believe a pie overflowing with fruit is always best.

I prefer to pre-bake my pie crust just a little so that the bottom gets nice and crispy. If you’re feeling lazy (as I often am) you don’t have to bother.

1 single pie crust

12-16 peaches
3/4 cup brown sugar, very lightly packed
4 tbsp flour
1/4 tsp or so ground nutmeg
dash of vanilla (optional)
milk or water for brushing (optional)
coarse sugar (optional)

Roll out pie crust and place in a buttered 9″ pie dish. Place pie dish in freezer. Gather up the scraps of dough and place them in the freezer as well.

Preheat oven to 425-degrees F.

Peel peaches, if desired, by cutting an “x” in the bottom and placing them in boiling water for about 30 seconds and then transferring the peaches to an ice bath. You can also leave them fuzzy. Slice the peaches about 1/2-1/4″ thick and place in a bowl. Stir in the sugar, flour, nutmeg and vanilla (if using). Set aside.

Your pie crust should be nice and chilled now, line it with aluminum foil, then place your pie weights in the foil and put the crust in the oven. Pre-bake for about 10 minutes, then take out the weights and let bake for another 5. Your crust should be white and might start to brown just a little. Don’t worry if it shrinks a little, that’s normal. If there are cracks, patch them up with some of your scraps, it helps keep the juices from flowing outside the crust and sticking to the bottom of the pan.

In the meantime, roll out the scraps of pie crust and cut out circles (or whatever shapes you prefer).

When the pie crust is ready, take it out of the oven, and using a slotted spoon (or your [very clean] hands) transfer the peach filling to the pie crust. Decorate with your scraps, brush with milk or water and then sprinkle with coarse sugar (totally optional). Cover the edges of your pie crust with a pie shield or aluminum foil. Place in the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until the peaches are tender and the filling in bubbling. Serve warm with whipped cream or mascarpone cheese.

*This tea towel of Swedish endearments was given to me by my aunt and uncle shortly after they moved to Sweden. It is my favorite dish towel and only gets used for the most important of tasks, like wrapping still-warm pies.

Banana Pudding

naomi — Fri, 23 Jul 2010 09:14:18 +0000

Once upon a time, I worked in an office and made money. It’s true, it happened. One day, a swarm of consultants descended upon us and made us take the Meyers-Briggs Type Indicator test. When we got the results, (I’m an INTP) I was described as a “mad-scientist”, often distracted with many projects going at the same time. Me? Distracted? Never!

I often feel a bit mad, but rarely like a scientist, except when I’m making caramel. When I make caramel I feel like an alchemist turning base elements into pure gold. That’s certainly what you get when you make the banana caramel that flavors this pudding, pure molten sweet delicious gold.

You don’t have to make the banana pudding, if you go just as far as making the caramel you will be more than happy. It’s delicious mixed into plain yogurt, or blended with milk and frozen into a banana sherbet. I would imagine that it’s also very good sandwiched between a two shortbread or some chocolate cookies. However, if you do make the pudding, oh if you do! it is manna from heaven. I like mine layered with homemade shortbread but do with it what you will. I challenge you not to eat it all in one go.

Banana pudding
Stolen, blatantly, from Francis Lam

If you have never made caramel before, go to Francis Lam’s original recipe for a more thorough description of the process.

For the caramel:

2 very ripe bananas, pureed until they’re the consistency of pancake batter
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup water

Stir together the sugar and water and bring to a boil. Turn down to a simmer and wait for it to caramelize. Watch it closely and when it starts to turn nice and golden, take it off the heat. It will continue to cook a little. Stir in the pureed bananas, it will probably bubble up like crazy, it’s okay, keep stirring and soon you will have the magical elixir of life, banana caramel. Let it cool and then put it in the fridge, you will have more than you need for the pudding, but you will have no trouble eating it all.

For the pudding:

1-1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream, plus more for whipping
3 tbsp cornstarch
2 eggs
6 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp unsalted butter, cut into pieces
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 cup banana caramel
1-2 bananas
shortbread cookies (or whatever cookies you have on hand)

Mix a few tablespoons of the milk with the cornstarch in a large saucepan, make sure all the cornstarch dissolves, set aside.

Heat up the rest of the milk and the cream in a medium saucepan until small bubbles start to form around the edge but the milk is not boiling. While your milk heats up whisk the eggs, sugar and salt into the milk-cornstarch mixture.

Slowly whisk the hot milk into the egg mixture.

Set the pan over medium-low heat and stir constantly, adding the butter a piece at a time. The mixture will begin to thicken and eventually will feel like pudding (if it lumps a little just whisk the lumps out). Once it reaching pudding consistency turn the heat to low and let it cook for another minute or so.

Pour the pudding through a mesh strainer into a bowl. Stir in the banana caramel and the vanilla. Lay a piece of plastic wrap directly onto the pudding’s surface, let cool completely before putting it in the fridge.

When your pudding is cool, try not to eat it all straight from the bowl. You can make one big pudding or (as I like to do) make several individual puddings in little glass dishes. You’ll want to crush some of your cookies and press them into the bottom of your dish. Then you’ll spoon in some of the pudding. Add a layer of cookies and a layer of sliced banana, then more pudding. More cookies, more banana, more pudding. Deck with whipped cream and crushed cookies. Let sit in the fridge for about four hours, to let the cookies soften and the flavors meld. Enjoy!

Blueberry Apricot Mini Pies

naomi — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 03:01:40 +0000

I’m in L.A. for a few days, visiting with my family and relishing the heavenly west coast weather. Cool and grey, it would probably be infuriating if I lived here and were wishing for summer and the beach, but it’s pure bliss coming from the inferno that New York has been this past week. As has been noted by more than one blogger, the east coast (and the midwest) has been suffering from quite a heat wave. It hit 103 on Monday and I steadfastly refused to turn on the oven despite my desire to make summer pies. On Tuesday, I caved.

I just couldn’t help it: I had apricots sitting in a basket on my windowsill, fresh blueberries left over from making soda, and a pie crust languishing in the fridge, before I knew it the oven was on. My handy thermometer told me it was over 95 degrees in our kitchen and I banished Amir, shaking his head at my foolhardiness, to the air conditioned living room/bedroom to save one of us from baking along with our desserts.

Let me tell you, dear readers, it was worth it. For dessert that night we each enjoyed our own little pie with a dollop of whipped cream, the fruit sweet and tart and surrounded by a flaky, buttery crust, a perfect ending to a smoldering day. Even Amir conceded that my baking had been a good idea after all, despite the fact that he thought I was suicidal at the time.

The next morning, while I put off packing, we ate the remaining blueberry apricot pies with a dollop of mascarpone on top; I would brave the most extraordinary weather for such an exemplary breakfast.

Blueberry Apricot Mini Pies

Blueberries and apricots are one of my favorite combinations and the moment apricots were in the market I whipped up the beta version of these pies. That was a few weeks ago but I didn’t measure anything and we ate them so quickly I didn’t have a chance to take any pictures. I made them again, measuring cups and camera in hand, just for you (because we didn’t enjoy them in the slightest).

For the pie crust*:

2-1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
14 tbsp cold butter
4 tbsp leaf lard
4-6 tbsp cold water

Whisk together the flour and salt. Using your hands, mix the butter and lard into the flour until the mixture forms pieces the size of large peas. Still using your hands, mix in the water, 1 tbsp at a time, until the mixture is moistened and just holds together.

Pour the dough onto the counter and push it away from you with the palm of your hand. Form the dough into two disks, wrap in wax paper and place in the refrigerator to cool for at least 30 minutes.

Butter four 1-cup ovenproof dishes. Roll out the dough, place it in your dishes, and place them in the freezer. Preheat oven to 425-degrees.

For the filling:

8 apricots, sliced into eighths
1/2 pint blueberries
1/2 cup sugar (I used demerara sugar, but you can use whatever kind you like)
1 tbsp instant tapioca

Mix together all the ingredients, set aside.

Place pie crusts on a baking sheet and pre-bake for about 8-10 minutes, until the dough begins to color slightly (you can skip this step if you’re feeling lazy, I sometimes do). In the meantime, roll out the top crust and cut into whatever decorative shape you like.

Fill pie shells with filling and cover with top crust.

Bake 30-35 minutes, or until the crust is golden and the filling is bubbling.

Serve at room temperature with a dollop of whipped cream or mascarpone.

*You will only need 1/2 this amount but it is always good to have extra pie crust on hand, so just toss it in the freezer until you’re ready to use it.

You can also substitute butter for the leaf lard.

Blueberry Lemon Polenta Cake

naomi — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 23:31:33 +0000

I have been writing this blog for a whole year now. It started on a rainy New York day just like today. I talked about graham crackers and language, two of my favorite things in the world. It’s been a simple but monumental year, teaching, traveling, and almost finishing my Master’s degree (just one more month!). It’s been nice having this little piece of virtual space, a sort of mental garden. It’s been a place to write something other than academic papers, to try out new recipes, and experiment with photography. I have been so grateful to hear your voices in the comments. It’s been fun and I hope to be able to post more (and more regularly) in the coming year.

Today I have a lovely cake for us. Something simple, easy to throw together and delicious to eat. It all started with this post by Olga over at the Sassy Radish. I made the cake and loved it, tangy, sweet and studded with fruit – what is there not to love? But I cannot make anything without thinking about what I will do the next time and so while I was eating one cake I was dreaming up this one in my head. It was everything I hoped it would be: soft and yielding but slightly chewy from the polenta, full of toothsome blueberries and bright bursts of lemon, a perfectly simple, rustic cake.

Blueberry Lemon Polenta Cake
adapted from Gourmet Today

1/4 cup water
1 tsp cornstarch
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup + 1/2 cup sugar
2 cups blueberries
grated zest of one lemon
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup polenta*
1-3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup whole milk
1 stick (8 tbsp) unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Grease an 8″ square pan.

Stir together the water, cornstarch, lemon juice and 1/3 cup sugar in a small saucepan. Stir in the blueberries and bring to a simmer. Simmer about three minutes, stirring occasionally.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, lemon zest, and the remaining 1/2 cup sugar in a bowl.

Whisk together the milk, egg, and melted butter in a large bowl. Whisk in the flour mixture until just combined.

Reserve 1/2 cup of the blueberry mixture, and pour the remainder into the baking dish. Pour the batter over the fruit and spread the mixture evenly. Spoon the reserved fruit over the batter. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

*I used polenta because it was what I had in my cupboard but feel free to use regular cornmeal.

Gingerbread and Cranberry Meringue Tarts

naomi — Fri, 18 Dec 2009 07:30:39 +0000

As I sit here eating barley soup I would like to focus on what I’m not doing:

I am not writing a research paper
I am not cobbling together a portfolio
I am not getting high on Sharpie fumes while making a picture book
I am not even lesson planning

I am just sitting here enjoying the quiet in my head. And the barley soup.

Last night I had my last class of the year. Our final project was creating a “big book”, essentially a very large picture book (mine was 13″ x 19″), and an accompanying lesson plan. It was so much fun to see the books my classmates had made, they were so beautiful and creative, and some were just awe-inspiring. Everyone also brought in food and drinks to share. I had been wanting to make these tarts even since Ashley wrote about them on Not Without Salt. I’m so glad I did. Warm and spicy, tart and creamy, light and fluffy, they were a wonderful winter treat*. I had one for breakfast this morning.

Gingerbread and Cranberry Meringue Tart
from Not Without Salt

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Using your favorite gingerbread recipe (I will post my standby very soon)- roll the dough out very thin and gently lay it into mini tart pans.

Bake for 10-12 minutes. Unmold the tarts and let cool.

Bring the oven up to 400° F.

Fill your gingerbread shells with cranberry curd and top with a dollop of meringue (I would have piped the meringue but I couldn’t find my star tip). Bake for 8-10 mintues, or until meringue has browned.

Cranberry Curd
adapted from Nigella Lawson via Not Without Salt

I believe I only used 1-1/3 cups sugar, but you might want to taste it before taking it off the heat. It was late, I was tired, I kind of lost track.

1 pound (5 cups) cranberries
1 cup plus 2 tbsp water
7 tbsp butter
1-1/3 cups sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
6 eggs, lightly beaten

Put the cranberries and water in a pot and cook over low heat until cranberries are soft and begin to pop.

Push cranberries through a fine sieve or a food mill.

Return the puree to the pan. Whisk in the sugar, butter, salt, vanilla, and eggs. Cook over low heat, whisking frequently, until the curd is thick enough to hold marks of the whisk and the first bubbles appear on the surface.

Transfer curd to a bowl and chill, its surface covered with plastic wrap or waxed paper.

French Meringue

the white of one large egg
1/4 cup sugar

Whisk the egg white until soft peaks form.

Slowly whisk in half of the sugar. Continue whisking until the whites form stiff peaks. Fold in the rest of the sugar.

* No only were they delicious, the tarts were a great way to refresh my apartment: when I came home I was worried that it would still reek of Sharpie marker, but instead it smelled of gingerbread, which was a very pleasant surprise.

Wordless Wednesday: Pears

naomi — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 07:30:54 +0000

Chocolate Cherry Bars

naomi — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 20:22:45 +0000

These have been one of my favorite cookies for a long time. When I was putting together care packages for our not-so-near and but-very-dear they were part of the lineup. Crumbly chocolate cookie flecked with toasted coconut and filled with sour cherries and chunks of dark chocolate. What more do I have to say?

Chocolate Cherry Bars
Adapted from Martha Stewart’s Cookies

I love this book partly for the fool-proof recipes, but mostly because the cookies are arranged by texture and for the pictorial table of contents.

1-1/4 (6 oz or 170 g) cups dried cherries, coarsely chopped
1-1/4 cups (280 g) unsalted butter, all but 2 tbsp. (30 g) cut into small pieces
1 cup (225 g) sugar
2/3 (155 ml) cup water
1/2 cup (45 g) unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tsp (5 g) salt
3/4 (110 g) cup light brown sugar
1 cup (85 g) unsweetened shredded coconut lightly toasted
2 cups (260 g) plus 7-1/2 tsp (60 g) all-purpose flour
1 large egg
2 tbsp cherry liquor (optional, I used maraschino, but you could also use kirsch)
1/2 cup (3.5 oz or 105 g) semisweet chocolate chunks

Preheat oven to 350-degrees Farenheit. Butter a 9″ square baking pan and line with parchment paper or aluminum foil, allowing for a 2″ overhang. Butter parchment or foil.

Bring the cherries, 2 tbsp (30 g) butter, 1/4 cup (56 g) sugar, and the water to simmer in a saucepan over medium heat. Simmer, stirring occasionally, until almost all of the liquid has been absorbed, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in another 1/4 cup (56 g) of sugar. Cool, stirring occasionally, until the sugar has dissolved.

Whisk together the cocoa powder, salt, brown sugar, coconut and 2 cups (260 g) flour. Blend in the remaining butter with your fingers or a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Pack about 3 cups of the chocolate mixture into the baking pan. Bake until just set, about 20 minutes.

Whisk together the egg, the remaining 1/2 cup (113 g) sugar, and the liquor (if using) until pale. Fold in the cherry mixture and the remaining 7-1/2 tsp (60 g) flour; stir in the chocolate. Spread mixture over crust. Sprinkle with the rest of the chocolate dough.

Bake for about 50 minutes, a toothpick inserted into the center should come out clean. These cookies stay fresh for a while, at least 5 days (which is why they make such good care package material).

Fruity Clafouti

naomi — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 14:21:31 +0000

Have you ever made clafouti? Clafouti is a French flan-like desert traditionally made with cherries, though you can toss all number of fruits into the custard. I first made one ages ago, when I was a teenager, from a recipe in Martha Stewart Living. I remember at the time being surprised at how quickly it came together and how simple it was to make. I decided the time was ripe to make clafouti again, so I dusted off my old Mastering the Art of French Cooking.

I used the rest of my sour cherries, two fresh peaches and a handful of beautiful, jewel-like red currants. It was a perfect mix of sweet and sour, with little shots of the uber-tart currants. We liked it so much I had to make another two days later when we had some friends over for dinner. Try it and see how long it lasts in your house.

Summer Fruit Clafouti
adapted from Mastering the Art of French Cooking

Clafoutis are immensely adaptable, while sweet cherries are traditional you can use any kind of fruit you like. Apples work well, as do pears (see the clafouti aux poires at the bottom of the page up there?).

3 cups of fruit, pitted, peeled, etc.
1-1/4 cups milk
2/3 cup sugar, divided
3 eggs
1 tbsp vanilla extract
1/8 tsp salt
2/3 cup all-purpose flour

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Butter a 7-8 cup baking dish (my deep-dish 9″ pie plate was the perfect size).

Place the milk, 1/3 cup of the sugar, the eggs, vanilla, salt and flour into a blender in that order. Cover and blend at the highest speed for one minute.

Pour a 1/4″ layer of batter into the bottom of your dish and set over moderate heat for about a minute until a film begins to form on the bottom of the dish. Remove from heat. Add your fruit to the dish and sprinkle with the remaining 1/3 cup sugar. Pour the rest of the batter over the fruit and smooth with the back of a spoon.

Bake for about one hour. The clafouti is done when it has puffed and the top had browned. A needle or knife inserted into the center should come out clean. Julia & co. suggest dusting it with powdered sugar before serving, which I’m sure would look lovely.

Cherry pie, pt 1, the filling

naomi — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 15:41:18 +0000

I made my first pie when I was thirteen for Christmas dinner. It was cherry pie. It has become a staple in my baking repertoire and my signature dish. It is, I believe, the only cherry pie my mom has ever liked. It has, on occasion, caused an epiphany. Once one of my cousins was too sick to come to our holiday feast and requested a whole pie to have all to herself. This is some good stuff.

I found the recipe in the original Betty Crocker Cookbook, which had belonged to my grandmother. While it was falling apart and had some antiquated recipes (most of the salads involve jello and/or mayonnaise), it was full of useful tips and delicious cookies, cakes, and of course, pies.

Cherry Pie
Adapted from the Betty Crocker Cookbook

I’ve used both canned and fresh sour cherries (I’ve never been able to find frozen sour cherries). While I prefer the fresh ones, their season is woefully short, and does not extend into December, they hardly make it into August. If you’re using canned cherries, I like the Oregon tart cherries, and use 3-4 cans, depending upon the depth of my dish.

Cinnamon and almond extract are my fall back flavorings but if I have it on hand I like to add a teaspoon of rose water (quality rose water) or some lemon zest and juice.

4-5 cups sour cherries, pitted
1 cup (225 g) sugar
5 tbsp (38 g) flour
1/2 tsp cinnamon
a few drops almond extract
9″ double pie crust (I will tell you how I make my crust in a later post)

Preheat oven to 425-degrees. Mix together all ingredients and set aside.

With a slotted spoon, transfer fruit to your pie dish. Cover with top crust (I either use a lattice top or cut outs with cherry pie) and bake for 45-55 minutes until the filling is bubbling.

When I make fruit pies I usually roll out the bottom crust and pre-bake it for about 15 minutes (no one wants a soggy bottom), weighing it down with pie weights. While the bottom crust is in the oven I throw together the filling and let it sit so that the fruit releases some of its juices. Once the bottom crust is out of the oven, I roll out the top crust. Then I use a slotted spoon to transfer the fruit to the dish, leaving the excess juices behind in the bowl. Add top crust, cover the edges with aluminum foil or a crust shield, and bake until the juices in the center of the pie are bubbling.

I am a breakfast genius

naomi — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 18:20:05 +0000

It’s true. I may not have a lot to say for myself but my breakfast skills are undeniable.

This morning I was trying to decide whether to have granola and yogurt or lemon pound cake for breakfast. I commented to Amir that as I had put yogurt in the cake it was actually healthy. Then it hit me, I could have cake and yogurt for breakfast, screw the granola. Delicious? Yes. Nutritious? Obviously (it’s basically eggs and toast sprinkled with sugar and tied with a piece of lemon zest. Plus there were blueberries, and blueberries are super good for you.) Pretty? I think so.

I wish my powers ran along more useful lines, likes being able to create world peace, or fixing pipes or something, but breakfast will have to do for now.